Best Times to Post on YouTube in 2025 [Research]

Despite the growing popularity of short-form videos, I was surprised to discover that YouTube has the highest usage among social media platforms by video marketers, surpassing TikTok and Instagram.

According to HubSpot Blog SearchYouTube was the best-performing social media platform in 2023, growing 79% year-over-year.

Of the marketers surveyed, 95% said YouTube had a medium or high ROI and the majority would invest more in this social channel.

With so much emphasis on platform, I thought it was important to know what times and days video publishers performed best so you can optimize the best time to upload videos. YouTube videos.

Keep reading to find out what I discovered.

Table of contents

I know that creating a video for YouTube is not an easy task. First comes the ideation, then the script, followed by filming and finally editing – and that’s just at a high level. Imagine doing all that work just to upload a video that doesn’t get much traction.

When you’re starting out, you’re bound to struggle. However, if you’ve been at it for a while and your videos still aren’t getting any traction, your download time could be the culprit.

Use HubSpot’s AI Clip Creator to improve your YouTube video production.

We surveyed over 1,500 marketers for our Social Media Trends Report and asked them, “When is the best time to post on YouTube?” »

Here is the breakdown:

24% of those surveyed said 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.. 22% of those surveyed said 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. MP. 20% of those surveyed said 3 p.m. to 6 p.m..

Note: Respondents were asked to respond in their current time zone.

As for the best days, the data shows that SATURDAY is the most popular day for marketers, followed by Friday And Sunday.

I think one way to explain this is that on the weekend consumers are exhausted from the week and are looking for entertainment. The weekend also gives consumers more time to explore the platform and discover their favorite content.

Other video platforms like TikTok and Instagram focus on short-form content, making it easy for consumers to get what they need during breaks in the day. YouTube, however, requires a larger time commitment if you’re making longer videos.

However, keep in mind that YouTube prioritizes YouTube Short Films and his short videos are gaining popularity.

When is the worst time to post on YouTube?

Wondering when you shouldn’t post on the platform? According to our research, Mondays and Tuesdays are not that popular among marketers.

Only 9% of marketers surveyed said Monday was the best time to post on the video platform and another 9% chose Tuesday, putting those two days tied for last place.

As for the worst moments, here is the breakdown:

6 a.m. to 9 a.m. From 9:00 p.m. to midnight (midnight). 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Only 22% of respondents said posting early in the morning (between 6 a.m. and noon) provided the best results.

Does it matter what time you post on YouTube?

I think the answer to this question is both yes and no. Yes, the time you post on YouTube in the short term is important because it will impact your video’s view count in the first few hours.

Optimizing your views during this time can help drive more traffic to your content and help your channel grow.

However, this does not play a major role in the long term. Say your video was posted at 3am, this has little impact on the number of views it can generate over the next few months or years.

Unlike a platform like Instagram where fresh content is the key to success, novelty is not the main ranking factor on YouTube: relevance is.

This means that even if your video doesn’t perform well initially, if it’s the most relevant video to a user’s query, it can quickly gain traction. I therefore recommend that your first priority is to produce relevant and good quality videos.

I think another trend to consider is AI. In 2023, 71% of marketers said they used generative AI for content creation and that it performed better than content created without it.

A whopping 87% plan to use AI tools for content creation in 2024 and the majority (26%) said they believe YouTube will have the most promising generative AI features.

If you’re interested in leveraging AI for your videos, check out HubSpot AI Clip Maker to improve and speed up your video production.

How to find the best time to post on your channel

Your Analytics Dashboard is the best place to find the most accurate and reliable data about your channel, including the best time to post.

If your channel generates enough traffic, you will have access to an advanced report that will show you when your viewers are most active on the platform.

I think this will be especially helpful so you can post videos when your audience is online, which may not coincide with the trends I cited earlier.

To access this page, follow these steps:

Open YouTube Studio. Click on Analytical. Open it Audience and view your report.

With this personalized information, you can find the best time to upload YouTube videos.

Post videos to YouTube

Data analysis showed me that knowing the best times and days to post on YouTube is not meant to be a hard and fast rule for when you should post.

Instead, I recommend using this data as a guide to optimize your channel for short- and long-term success.

I learned that the most important part of leveraging YouTube for your brand is creating high-quality, relevant content for your audience.

And with YouTube’s growing popularity and potential revenue, it’s worth the investment to get it right.

Editor’s note: This article was originally published in May 2022 and has been updated for completeness.